Perhaps that headline should read, “Logic should dictate… but cognitive dissonance works against adopting a different point of view, especially if it seems divorced from the realities within which our commonsense worldviews developed.”

Cognitive dissonance [1] is a relatively new concept (1957). It is a good one to grasp. It is all about our discomforts from holding contradictory beliefs. It leads to denial, even the denial of science, truth, insight and the infinite.

Key Question: How can there be so many radically different belief systems in the world? What are we missing? What separates us so fundamentally into groups of belief systems? How can diametrically opposed belief systems occupy such a small space (the globe)?

If each of us creates our own “really-real” reality — it is hypostatized — is there a “really-real” universe? I say there is; and given how confused and mean-spirited and distrustful everybody is getting, we had better figure it out quickly.

Today’s conspiracy theories overlap disinformation and delusions. The worldwide web puts it all out there as if it is all true. The result is that it redefines cognitive dissonance. When surfing the web, very few of us are able to break through to a truth that begins to integrate the plausible data and discards the impossible data.

When I heard national television commentators talking about the The Deep State and shadow governments, I knew that conspiracy theories had finally made it into the public square. Wow, from Bernie Sanders to Rush Limbaugh, blog after blog had something to say. It is mind-boggling. I actually sent a “thank you” note to Jimmy Wales, founder of Wikipedia. Though not perfect, Wikipedia is a consensus-building platform where the truth struggles to wiggle out between the lines.

If there is a Deep State controlled by groups like the Bilderberg, our models — of who we are and what our universe is — are so incomplete, even relatively sophisticated people are confused. At this point, we are all edging closer and closer to a nervous breakdown.

News / ResearchQuietExpansion.com opens for business: There are many websites associated with these efforts. Most attempt to capture historical moments in time and to analyze its possible role within academic work. There hasn’t been a place for personal reflections. That changes today.

Universe View: What is your expertise? There are many cells within this spreadsheet that are still blank With over 2000 of them, this site will always be “under construction.”